Football Fever | Superb defence takes France close to another World Cup title

France's Samuel Umtiti, second from left, is congratulated by his teammates France's Antoine Griezmann, Raphael Varane and Paul Pogba, from left, after scoring the opening goal during the semifinal match between France and Belgium at the 2018 soccer World Cup in the St. Petersburg Stadium in St. Petersburg, Russia yesterday (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

ST PETERSBURG, Russia (AP):

France's defence made the difference - on both sides of the field.

Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris kept out the shots and defender Samuel Umtiti scored the winning goal from a corner.

It was France's backline, not its slick attackers, that carried the team to the World Cup final with a 1-0 victory over Belgium on Tuesday.

"This is why football is magical, it gives everyone emotions. It's tough not to give into euphoria, but it's a fantastic moment," Lloris said. "We feared them on set pieces, but in the end it was us scoring from one."

France coach Didier Deschamps fell into Umtiti's arms after the final whistle. His superbly drilled defence, led by Raphael Varane, neutralised Belgium's much-hyped attack to record a fourth shutout in six games so far.

"They have so many athletic players, to have resisted in defence is very good. We had to defend very deep sometimes," Deschamps said. "We came up against a very good Belgium side which controlled the game more than us. But we also hurt them."

Umtiti danced in front of the France fans, while centre back partner Varane walked over to them and pumped his clenched fist. Varane was injured when France lost the European Championship final two years ago, and he looks determined to make up for it.

The spotlight has been on 19-year-old sensation Kylian Mbappe in Russia, whose electric pace and skill lit up the tournament. But for the second consecutive knockout game, a defender managed to score when Mbappe couldn't.

Against Uruguay last Friday, it was Varane's header that gave France the lead in a 2-0 win. A few days later, it was Umtiti rising to head home a corner from the right in the 51st minute.

"Enormously proud," Umtiti said. "We worked really hard together, and it's me that scored but we all delivered a big game."

Umtiti showed superb timing to leap above Belgium midfielder Maroune Fellaini - the tallest non-goalkeeper on either side - and power a header past Thibaut Courtois.

"When you're not particularly tall you need determination and the will to get in front of the opponent," Umtiti said. "The set piece was really well taken as well, and that helped me beat someone as good as Fellaini in the air."

Forward Antoine Griezmann set up Umtiti's and Varane's headed goals up with his cushioned delivery from set pieces. But like Mbappe, he took a back seat against the Belgians as Lloris and his defence starred at St Petersburg Stadium.